Cause and effect…

I have a fondness for making my characters suffer. I send them down the wrong paths, I keep them in the dark, I torture them with impossible situations and torment them with agonizing decisions. It makes for a more interesting story. As a result, my poor characters are all forced to grow. When I’m on a roll, as I am right now, I tend to get wrapped in my pov character’s situation. I become preoccupied with how things are unfolding, who is saying what, going where, doing what, and apparently I go about my day with a somewhat distant expression. If a character’s world is falling apart, I’m there, speculating who set us up the bomb, or how to avenge what needs avenging. Acquaintances ask me what’s bothering me,and if they know me well enough I can just say “writing stuff” and they leave it with that. And if I’m grinning and giggling, they figure Annabel (the character, not the boat) is, as usual, being Annabel. And those who don’t know me that well are, so it seems, confused.

“A mystery in the John D. MacDonald tradition – both in its largely watery setting and tone, the novel also brings to mind Dashiell Hammett in the complexity of its plot, and even Stieg Larsson in its use of a strong young woman with an attitude as a main character. Last Exit In New Jersey is well-paced, densely-plotted story that mystery-thriller fans will enjoy immensely.”
~ Alex Austin, author of The Red Album of Asbury Park Remixed

Hazel Moran, the tough truck-driving amateur sleuth introduced in Last Exit in New Jersey, returns in this dark and twisting sequel.